john b

We did the tasting menu at Bluezoo again last week. The standout course was bacon and eggs--poached duck egg over cheese grits, with house smoked heritage pork bacon and bacon jus.

We ate at bluezoo last year and we're going back again in a few months. It's definitely not a Disney-fied restaurant. The Swan and Dolphin seem to cater to the convention crowd, and not families on vacation. The restaurant has a modern, hip vibe. Cocktail waitresses in very short skirts. I remember the food, too. We did a 5-6 course tasting menu. I have the tasting menu around here somewhere, I'll post a few of the courses if I can find it. Here's the menu, in case you haven't seen it: http://allears.net/menu/menu_bz.htm

It's been a few years since I've to Piscataway to eat, but my recollection is the same as Curlz's--chains. I don't know what's there now, but it was Bennigan's and Pizzeria Uno on Stelton Road, and that's about it.

I wonder how the restaurant would have handled the situation if you, recognizing that you were intentionally being rushed, "fought back"?? Take the wine bottle away from the waitress. Brush off the runner when he comes for your app plates. Send the main courses back when they're served on top of the apps, and take your sweet time eating each course, etc. I'm not one for confrontation in public places, but I'd be very tempted to drag my meal to two plus hours if someone tried to pull bs like this on me.

I'm getting a little tired of her beating herself up. It seems like everything she says starts with, "I wasn't happy with.." or , "I didn't like..." I wish she'd just relax and cook.

I'd love to see Colicchio on Top Chef Masters. Put him on "the other side" of the show. I think he'd be great.

But for Mike, this season's group of chefs don't have much in the way of personality. They're serious about their food, and that doesn't always make for interesting TV. So although he often comes across as an ass (wonder how much he is egged on by the producers to run his mouth??), Mike is good for the show. I'm having hard time picking a winner at this point. In prior seasons, one or two were head and shoulders above the rest. With this group, it's still a toss up between the V brothers, Jennifer and Kevin.

Answering my own question...The RP is fine with kids. We ate there last week, and it was a great meal. The kids had shrimp and grits, linguini with clams and sausage and lobster tacos. My wife and I both had the red snapper. Service was great. Nice beer and wine list. A bit of a hike from the Disney resorts (probably 35 minutes), but worth the drive.

My impression of the area around WDW and US is that unless you're eating in one of the parks or on property resorts, it's almost all chain restaurants. City Walk at US is all chains. Downtown Disney is slowly becoming less Disney owned and more chain owned places to eat.

Is the Ravenous Pig kid friendly? I don't mean "chicken fingers and mac and cheese on the menu", but would it be out of place to go with kids?

You're thinking too hard. She's there for her hotness, and nothing more. Accept it. Love it.

I'm sipping on the '08 right now. It does seem a bit less hoppy. I think I have a few '07's leftover. I'll have to do a side by side tasting.

If you're near Philly, you might want to give Chestnut Hill Coffee a try. They are serious about good coffee. ← Thanks! Philly is not far at all. What's the general consensus on La Colombe? I think I can get their stuff on my side of the river.

We're on the edge of our seats (laptops, whatever) -- what did you end up getting, or have you decided? ← Sorry, we've been too busy grinding coffee. We got the Capresso Infinity. So far so good. Now if I can find some good whole beans close to home...

We have a drip and a French press.